


The Flower Doctor

by chknfriedjoong



Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Other, child mingi, dwarf oni hongjoong, it's based in that universe, just friends and a smoll bean, mingi is the smoll bean, nothing romantical right now, oni seonghwa, somali and the forest spirit, the other members will show up later i promise
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-22
Updated: 2020-03-22
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:00:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,368
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23266618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chknfriedjoong/pseuds/chknfriedjoong
Summary: Hongjoong is an herbalist with a cottage out in the forest. He and his assistant Seonghwa make various salves, tinctures, and other remedies for those in nearby towns. Their routine starts to change when Hongjoong discovers a small child hiding in the forest.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 9





	The Flower Doctor

**Author's Note:**

> Hello one and all! This is my first fic in the ATEEZ fandom, so I hope you enjoy it! This is loosely based on the universe in 'Somali and the Forest Spirit.' As I was watching it, I couldn't help but see Hongjoong and Seonghwa in Shizuno and Yabashira, so I took that idea and ran with it.

_ “Hongjoong!”  _ Seonghwa’s voice rang sharp and clear in his ears as he jogged out the door, escaping the torture that was tidying. He would apologize later. Seonghwa never stayed mad for too long anyway. Taking in a deep breath of the fresh Spring air, Hongjoong slowed his pace to a walk, a basket tucked under his arm. 

Even if his main objective was escaping, he could at least be somewhat productive. He always needed a healthy stock of St. John’s wort for his patients, and there was much of it to be found along the forest path. The dwarf oni strolled through the forest, picking bunches of herbs for his shop and berries for Seonghwa to bake into pies. 

As he neared a bush of wild blackberries, Hongjoong heard a soft sniffling sound. Curious, he crept closer, then pushed back the leaves to find a crying child. It definitely wasn’t old enough to be away from its parents, and by the look on its face, it was very lost indeed. The healer crouched down and set his basket aside, smiling gently at the child.

“Hi there little one. Are you lost?” Wide-eyed, the child took a moment to stare at Hongjoong before hesitantly nodding. 

“Where did you last see your parents? I’m sure they’re worried about you.” Hongjoong said. 

The child looked down at its feet, biting its lower lip. “Mama and Papa are gone.” 

“Gone?” asked the oni. The child nodded once more, but didn’t elaborate. Taking a closer look, the healer noticed a large scrape on its knee, not yet scabbed over. “I bet that hurts, huh?” Another nod, accompanied by a loud sniffle. 

“My name is Hongjoong and I’m an herbalist. How about I help you with that scrape?” He reached out his hand to the child. 

“A...a what?” The child pursed its lips, tilting its head to one side. 

“Ah...well, an herbalist is like a doctor, but I use plants to make my medicine.” Hongjoong explained. He could see the little gears turning in the child’s head as it thought. Soon, a bright smile appeared on its face.    
  
“So you’re a flower doctor!!” it chirped, getting up on its feet. 

“I guess you could say that,” he replied. While standing, the child was just a head shorter than Hongjoong. The oni scanned over the child once more, taking notice of the horns popping out of its cloak. 

“And what species are you, little one?” 

“I’m a minotaurus!” it said. “And I’m Mingi!” 

Holding out his hand once more, Hongjoong grinned at the child. “Well Mingi the minotaurus, would you like to come with me to get your knee fixed up?” 

“Yes please!” Mingi took the offered hand and toddled along the path next to the healer, the two making their way back to Hongjoong’s shared home with Seonghwa. 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------

When Hongjoong opened his front door a short while later, he was met with a fuming Seonghwa. 

“Kim Hongjoong I can’t believe you!! This is the third time this week you’ve ran away and left me with an enormous mess to clean up! I agreed to live with you in this forest to be your assistant, not your maid! And another thing--” 

Hongjoong held out his hands placatingly as he tried to calm the taller oni. “Now, now Seonghwa, that’s no way to greet your best friend in the whole world and his distinguished guest!” The shorter gestured to the child peeking out from behind his robes. 

“I--you--where--” Seonghwa stuttered, jaw agape. 

“Little Mingi was hiding behind a blackberry bush with a scraped knee,” Hongjoong said. “I invited him to come back here with me so I could fix him up. Right, Mingi?” Mingi just nodded, still staring intently up at Seonghwa. 

“Now, go ahead and have a seat, Mingi, while I go get my materials. That little chair over there will do just fine.” The smaller oni pointed to a chair next to a large shelf filled with various bottles and jars, each labelled and dated. Mingi did as he was told and watched as Hongjoong puttered around the room, grabbing a bowl of water, a cloth, bandages, and a few other things the child couldn’t recognize. 

Once everything was gathered together, the healer dipped his cloth into the bowl of water, then wrung out the excess. He got to work cleaning Mingi’s wound, gently dabbing around the scrape and getting out any dirt and debris. Next, he procured a bottle of a strong-smelling liquid and poured some on another cloth. 

“This may sting a little, but it will help your wound heal faster. Can you be nice and still for me, Mingi?” Mingi made an affirmative noise and took a breath through his nose, looking up at the ceiling away from Hongjoong. He winced as the cloth was applied to the scrape, but did not cry or squirm. 

“Good job Mingi,” the dwarf oni praised, spreading a cool salve across the wound. He finished the job by wrapping the knee securely in bandages, tying them off into a pristine knot. 

“All done! Give it a few days and your knee will be good as new. Feel better?” 

Mingi swung his little legs from the chair, then hopped up and toddled over to the other side of the shelf. “It doesn’t hurt at all anymore! You’re an amazing flower doctor mister Hongjoong!”

“Flower doctor?” Seonghwa asked, arching a brow at the younger oni. 

“He came up with that himself after I tried explaining what an herbalist was,” the other replied. 

“Well aren’t you a smart cookie?” The elder mused, grinning at the child. 

“Cookies?!?” Mingi squealed, his eyes practically sparkling. 

“Uh oh, another sweet tooth. Though I do believe I have some left over from yesterday...you wouldn’t happen to want one, would you Mingi?” Seonghwa glanced over to the jar on the kitchen counter, half-full of homemade cookies. 

“Yes please! Could I have some milk too?” Mingi asked, hands held together in anticipation. 

“Of course you can, come have a seat at the table.” Seonghwa walked to the kitchen and took a plate down from the cupboard, placing a few cookies on it and pouring a glass of milk. He brought them over to Mingi who was bouncing in his chair, looking at Seonghwa like he had brought down the moon. 

“Thank you so much!” he said, a little too loudly, taking a cookie and biting into it. Soon the room was filled with the sounds of crunching and happy giggles. “Mister Seonghwa these cookies are so good! Did you make them?” 

“Yes, I did. I do most of the cooking since anything Hongjoong makes tastes awful,” Seonghwa said, his eyes sparkling mischievously. 

“I resent that remark!” Hongjoong barked, reaching into the cookie jar. Seonghwa smacked his hand away. 

“You, sir, don’t get any cookies until you’ve finished cleaning up the mess you left!” The elder looked at the other pointedly. 

“Oh come on Seonghwa, just  _ one  _ cookie?” The smaller begged, putting on his best puppy-dog eyes. 

“ _ After _ you clean. Go on, hop to it!” The taller oni took the cookie jar and put it on the highest shelf in the kitchen, out of Hongjoong’s reach. The look on the dwarf oni’s face quickly soured as he stomped off, grumbling, to go tidy up. Mingi just giggled again, already enjoying the company of his two new friends. 

  
When the cookies and milk were finished, the little child stood up and stretched, letting out a great yawn. “Mister Seonghwa, is it okay if I take a nap? I’m a little sleepy…” Mingi said, rubbing his eyes and yawning once more.    
  
Seonghwa smiled. “Sure. You can sleep in the guest room. Come with me.” He held out his hand to Mingi, who took it and walked along with him into another room with a large bed at the center. Pulling back the blankets, he picked up the child and placed him into bed, tucking him in tightly. Within moments, Mingi had drifted off to sleep, his breaths even and slow. Seonghwa padded quietly out of the room and shut the door, heading back to the kitchen to have a talk with Hongjoong. 

**Author's Note:**

> Now what kind of questions does Seonghwa have for Hongjoong, hmmm? That will be revealed in the next chapter! 
> 
> I'll do my best to update weekly, and I think Sundays are a good time. 
> 
> If you'd like to scream with me about the good boys, you can find me on twitter at @apparegarbage


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